Memphis adds Ian Foster and Manny Covey to major preseason award watchlists

Memphis football announced Friday that two Tigers have been placed on high-profile preseason award watchlists, a move that spotlights both sides of the ball for the upcoming season. Safety Ian Foster was included on the Chuck Bednarik Award watchlist, while running back Manny Covey earned a spot on the Doak Walker Award watchlist. The listings serve as an early barometer for national attention, even though they do not predict end-of-season finalists.

The Chuck Bednarik Award is presented to the most outstanding defensive player in college football. By placing Foster on the watch list, Memphis is positioning its defensive backfield presence for recognition that typically goes to impact players who produce in multiple phases, including pass coverage and run defense. For Foster, the watch group creates an external benchmark that will follow Memphis through the season.

Cove y’s inclusion on the Doak Walker Award watchlist comes with a similar form of national framing. The Doak Walker Award recognizes the most outstanding running back in college football. Memphis is therefore asking voters and national media to track Covey not just as a team centerpiece, but as a player whose production can stand alongside other premier backs in the sport.

Preseason watch lists are often built from past performance, role clarity, and projections based on how players are expected to be used. At the same time, they are not a promise of individual hardware. Many players appear on watch lists and then miss time, face changes in usage, or find their production constrained by game plans built specifically to neutralize them.

For Memphis, the double watch-list reveal is also a way to underscore roster balance. A defensive award watch item can report that the Tigers believe their pass defense and physicality up front are moving toward a higher national profile, while a running back award watch entry emphasizes that the offense is built around an identifiable offensive engine.

The watch-list notices also set up a straightforward storyline for the season’s narrative arc. If Foster and Covey stay consistently involved and show production that aligns with what the awards tend to reward, their names will remain in circulation as national awards committees and media organizations narrow their attention later in the year.

What to watch next is how each player’s impact shows up in game film and statistics once the season begins. For Foster, that means coverage and tackles that demonstrate versatility against both the run and the pass. For Covey, it means sustained rushing value, workload, and efficiency that keep him in the conversation for the award that centers on top-tier running backs.